Tag Archives: Fisherman Tom Puglas

Canadian Coast Guard destroys man’s boat, then sues to cover $8,500 bill

A Campbell River man is being sued for over $8,500 in federal court after he says the Canadian Coast Guard destroyed his boat without his knowledge. Tom Puglas, 76, of the Mamalilikulla First Nation, said it all began on a 2017 salmon fishing trip. When his 39-foot wood-hulled gillnetter broke down, he moored it along the outside finger of a dock in Port McNeill. According to federal court documents, the Canadian Coast Guard was called in on Aug. 22, 2017, after reports Puglas’s vessel was sinking and discharging oil. The documents claim the Coast Guard contacted Puglas, who said he would remove the vessel from the water and make any necessary repair. Puglas denies that ever happened. >click to read< 09:17